This week's Reading Royals notes

Thursday, January 17, 2013

NOTES OF THE WEEK1.The Royals went 1-1-0-1 over the past week. The 4-1 win in Kalamazoo onWednesday extended the Royals win streak to three (3-0-0-0), which was snapped in Friday’s 5-4 shootout loss in Wheeling. The 2-1regulation loss in Wheeling snapped the Royals most recent unbeaten streak at four games (3-0-0-1).

2. The Royals have compiled a record of 13-2-1-1 in the team’s last seventeen games. Over the past thirty-one games, Reading has gone 25-4-1-1.

3. The Royals reached the half-way point of the ECHL’s 2012-13 regular season (36 games) with the 4-1 win in Kalamazoo on Wednesday. The Royals

26-8-1-1=54 record (.750 win percentage)after the conclusion of that game is the best half-season record ever compiled in the twelve year history of the team. The previous high water mark in that regard was held by the 2010-11 team,

which went 23-10-2-1=49 (.681 win percentage) in the first half of the year. Last season, Reading was 15-15-3-3 at the half way point.

4. The 5-4 shootout loss in Wheeling on Friday followed by the 2-1 regulation loss to the Nailers on Saturday marked the first time that the Royals went two consecutive games without a win since Games Six and Seven of the regular season (October 27 and October 28) when Reading lost in a shootout to Wheeling (2-3) and was defeated in regulation by the Toledo Walleye (2-4).

5. Reading scored first in all three games this past week—and have recorded the game’s first goal in the last four straight. Saturday’s loss in Wheeling marked the first time this season that Reading has scored the game’s firstgoal and lost in regulation: 17-1-1-2.

6. Reading trailed entering the third period (2-3) Friday in Wheeling and fell behind by two (2-4)

1:19 into the final frame. The Royals were able to mount a two-goal third period comeback to gain a tie in reulation time in that game. The game-tying goal (by David Marshall) came with just 16 seconds left in regulation. Despite losing in a shootout that night, Friday’s game marked the fourth time this year that the Royals entered the third period trailing the opposition and came out with atleast a point (3-7-0-1).

7. Reading i outscoring the opposition 47-31 (+16) in the third period of

play this season.8. Friday’s shootout loss marked the first time this year that the Royals have scored four or more goals and failed to win the game (18-0-0-1).

9. Saturday’s 2-1 loss marked the third time this year that Reading’s offense has been held to just one goal, which is a season low. Reading is still the leading scoring team in the Eastern Conference, averaging 3.58 goals per game, which is fourth overall in the league.

10. Saturday’s game also marked the first time this year that the Royals sustained a regulation loss when holding the opposition to two goals or less (16-1-1-0). Friday’s 5-4 shootout loss marked only the fourth time this year that the Royals have given up five or more goals against (0-3-0-1). Reading’s overall team goals against average (2.76) is fourth best in the league.

11. The 5-4 shootout loss on Friday dropped the Royals’ record to 5-3 in games that have gone beyond regulation time. The team is 3-2 in the skills competition—and both losses in the shootout so far this season have been to Wheeling.

12. Reading’s shooters made two of the six shootout attempts they took on Friday night. David Marshall scored on his effort. He is 4-for-5 in the skills competition this year. Overall, the Royals’ shooters have made 10 of the team’s 29 attempts in the shootout—34.5% scoring ratio (tenth best in the league).

13. Friday’s shootout was goaltender Sergey Kostenko’s first go in the skills competition in pro hockey. He stopped three of the six attempts he saw from Wheeling’s shooters. Overall, Reading’s goaltenders have rejected 18 of the 28 shots they’ve faced in the shootout for a 64.3% save percentage (fourteenth best in the league).

14. The Royals power play was held off the board in all three games played this past week and has now gone four consecutive games without a power play goal (0-11). Reading’s power play, which has failed to score a goal in eight of the last nine games, has been blanked twenty-two this season. Overall, Reading is scoring power play goals at a 15.2%

clip (25 PPG in 168 Opps), eighteenth in the twenty-three team league.

15. After Reading’s penalty killers knocked off Kalamazoo’s lone power play chance on Wednesday—which was the third straight game in which the Royals had blanked the opposition’s power play—the PK was

touched up for two power play goals in the three chances that the Nailers’ power play had in the two games played in Wheeling on Friday and Saturday. Overall, the Royals, who have blanked the opposition’s power play twenty-one times this season, are killing at an 85.3% clip (23 PPGA in 156 Opps), which is tied for third best in the ECHL.

MORE NOTES OF THE WEEK1.Yannick Tifu picked up a pair of assists, including one on the game’s first goal by Alex Berry, in Reading’s 4-1 win over Kalamazoo on Wednesday. He followed that up with his team leading twelfth multi-point performance of the season (1g-2a) in Friday’s 5-4 shootout loss. His helpers that night included the primary assist on the game- tying goal (by David Marshall) with 16 seconds left in regulation time. Tifu also scored on his shootout attempt that night (shooting second). He is 2-for-5 in the shootout this year. Tifu, who has recorded at least one point in 16 of the Royals last nineteen games (9g-17a - 26pts),leads the Royals in assists (25) and points (38). His thirteen goals is tied with Denny Urban currently with the Worcester Sharks of the AHL) for the team lead in that category.

2. David Marshall, who picked up an insurance goal for Reading in Wednesday’s 4-1 win in Kalamazoo, extended his goal scoring streak to three straight games with a two-goal game inWheeling on Friday. Friday’s game marked Marshall’s second multi-goal (and eighth multi-point) performance of the year. Marshall’s first goal on Friday kicked off the scoring in that game and was his first ‘first goal’ of the season. Marshall bagged his shootout attempt on Friday, as well. he is now 4-for-5 in the shootout. Despite being held off the score sheet on Saturday, Marshall teid a personal season high with seven shots on goal in that game and currently leads the Royals with 108 shots on goal in thirty eight games played.

3. Joel Champagne picked up an assist on the game’s first goal in Wednesday’s 4-1 win over the K-Wings. Champagne has twenty points (7g-13a) in his last 19 games. He has played to a plus-8 (+8) in that time span. 4. Kirk MacDonald extended his personal goal scoring streak to three when he scored Reading’s fourth goal in the third period of Wednesday’s win. MacDonald also picked up a helper on the game winer (by Ethan Cox) that night. That was MacDonald’s sixth multi-point game of the year. MacDonald recorded an assist on the Royals’ third goal on Friday in Wheeling (to cut the Nailers’ lead to one at 4-3 early in the third period). That extended his personal point streak to four straight (3g-3a=6pts), which was snapped on Saturday in Wheeling.

5. Although Adam Comrie’s eight game point streak was snapped Wednesday in Kalamazoo, he bounced back by scoring the Royals’ second goal in Wheeling on Wednesday. That was his sixth goal in a span of nine games. Comrie, who leads all defensemen in the league with 98 shots, is currently second amongst d-men in goals (12g) and is tied for third amongst back-liners in the league with 25 points (12g-13a). Comrie is playing to a plus-17 (+17) in thirty-six games, which leads the Royals and is tied for third amongst defensemen in the leauge.

7. Ian O’Connor recorded a pair of assists inWednesday’s 4-1 win, including one on the game winner (by Ethan Cox). That was O’Connor’s fourth multi-point game of the year. O’Connor also scored the Royals’ lone goal in Saturday’s 2-1 loss. He has thirteen points (6g-7a) in his last sixteen games. He has played to a plus-5 (+5) in that span.

8. Barry Almeida, who was recalled to the Hershey Bears of the AHL prior to Saturday’s game, picked up a pair of assists in Friday’s shootout loss in Wheeling. That was his fourth multi-point game in the 21 that he has played with Reading this season. Prior to his recall, Almeida had six points (2g-4a) in his last five games with the Royals and played to a collecive plus-3 (+3) in those games.

9. Ethan Cox became the fourteenth different Royal to bag a game winning goal this season, when he notched the GWG in Wednesday’s win in Kalamazoo. Cox also registered an assist on the Royals’ fourth goal that night for his third multi-point game of the year.

10. Defenseman Patrick Wellar picked up an assist on the Royals’ second goal in Friday’s shootout loss. That was Wellar’s fourth assist in a span of six games.

11. Alex Berry scored on his first shot since returning to th Royals (after being recalled to Hershey on November 12, 2012) 3:27 into Wednesday’s 4-1 win over the K-Wings. That was the first ‘first goal’ of the year for Berry, who extended his personal point streak to three games (2g-3a - 5pts) with that shot. For Berry, who was recalled to Hershey prior to Saturday’s loss in Wheeling, Wednesday’s game marked the third time this year that he scored a goal and engaged ina tilt in a game with the Royals. (He fought Elgin Reid of Kalamazoo that night late in the third.) Prior to this most recent recall, Berry recorded ten points (5g-5a) in his last ten games with Reading.

12. Matt Pope, who was also recalled Hershey prior to Saturday’s game, picked up an assist on the game’s first goal (by David Marshall) on Friday in Wheeling. Pope has three points (1g-2a) in his three games with Reading.

13. Drew MacIntyre made 25 saves on 26 shots to win his first start as a Royal on Wednesday in Kalamazoo. He was the hard-luck loser in Saturday’s 2-1 loss inWheeling, stopping 26 of the 28 shots he faced that night. In three appearances for Reading, MacIntyre is 2-1-0-0 with a 1.76 goals against average and a .942 save percentage.

14. Goaltender Sergey Kostenko sustained his first professional shootout loss on Friday in Wheeling. Kostenko stopped twenty of 24 shots in 63:26 of hockey that night — and 3 of 6 in the shootout. In three appearances for Reading this year, Kostenko has gone 1-0-0-1 with a 4.57 goals against average and a .839 save percentage.